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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: deal · lean · chest · arm · charge · cell · fall · row

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. charge — electricity
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fall — to drop
  6. chest — a box
  7. lean — thin
  8. row — a line
  9. charge — a price
  10. charge — in control
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. chest — of your body
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. cell — in biology
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. deal — to handle
  20. fall — the season
  21. row — to paddle
  22. lean — to bend
  23. chest — of your body
  24. row — a quarrel

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com